Most television viewers now receive their television signals through a content aggregator such as a cable or satellite television provider. For subscribers to a direct broadcast satellite (DBS) service, for example, television programming is received via a broadcast that is sent via a satellite to an antenna that is generally located on the exterior of a home or other structure. Signals received from the satellite are generally transmitted from the antenna over a coaxial or similar cable to a set-top box (STB) or other receiver associated with the viewer's television. The receiver is then able to extract the desired channel from the content received over the cable connection from the antenna. Typically, the STB or other receiver transmits control signals over the same coaxial cable to the ODU to obtain the programming desired by the viewer.
While DBS systems have been widely deployed with great commercial and technical success, command and control of the ODU remains a challenge in some settings. In particular, a dedicated cable connection between the ODU and each receiver is typically needed to facilitate content transfer and control of the ODU. Typically, the receiver controls the ODU using a command protocol such as Digital Satellite Equipment Control (DiSEqC), a frequency-shift-keying (FSK)-based scheme, or the like. Conventional protocols for equipment control typically allow only a single receiver or other master to control one or more slave ODU devices, however. In homes or other installations that include multiple receivers, then, each receiver typically has a dedicated cable connection to the ODU to accommodate this single master limitation. Sharing ODU equipment between multiple receivers therefore typically involves placing dedicated cables between the ODU and each of the receivers. Moreover, both the ODU and the receiver typically need dedicated hardware and software to facilitate DiSEqC or similar control.
It is therefore desirable to create more efficient systems, devices and methods for controlling the ODU from the STB or other receiver(s). These and other desirable features and characteristics will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background section.